Sunday, September 14, 2008

Sep 14: Broadway's Belle #14

On this day in 2004 actress Brooke Tansley first stepped into the role of Belle in Disney's Broadway musical Beauty and the Beast. She became the 14th actress to play the lead role on Broadway (replacing Belle #13 - Christy Carlson Romano).
Originally from Waterbury, Connecticut, Tansley had made her Broadway debut in Hairspray. (She was the first actress from Waterbury to star on Broadway since Rosalind Russell in the 1953 production of Wonderful Town.)
Her Disney connection goes back to childhood, when Brooke and her brother Scott won a trip to Disney World.
Her run as Belle was to last just until January ... but was extended twice into September 2005.
Fans of TV's Law & Order may recognize her from the finale of season 6 - in which she played a character named Belle.

Click HERE for more September 14 Disney history.

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